The field of the disclosure relates generally to marine propulsion systems, and more particularly to, a marine propulsion system that includes two propulsion shafts and an electric machine coupled to each respective shaft and a method of operating the same.
At least one known marine propulsion system includes a plurality of gas turbine engines that are utilized to propel a marine vessel through the water. During operation, one or several gas turbine engines may be utilized to drive the vessel at the desired speed. For example, several gas turbine engines may be utilized to drive the vessel at a relatively high speed, with each gas turbine engine operating at peak fuel efficiency. Optionally, the operational speed of one or several of the gas turbine engines may be reduced to facilitate reducing the speed of the vessel.
While reducing the operating speed of the gas turbine engines is effective in reducing the operational speed of the vessel, gas turbine engines generally operate most effectively when the operational speed of the gas turbine engine is maintained near its rated load. As a result, varying the speed of a vessel by varying the speed of the gas turbine engine may result in the gas turbine engines operating at a reduced efficiency, thereby increasing fuel consumption, thus increasing the overall operating costs of the vessel.